No Time Like the Past
by Rowan Cookie
Summary: After a bizarre accident Jim finds himself in the past and it doesn't take him long to realise that now he can try and save Vulcan! The problem is, nobody believes a word he says and time is starting to run out.
1. Chapter 1

Jim sat down on the passenger seat of the shuttle craft and started to do up his harness,

"You ready Spock?" he asked, looking over at his first officer in the pilot seat next to him. Spock glanced at Jim before he reached up and flicked an overhead switch,

"Affirmative Captain," he said as he settled down into his seat and reached for his harness. Jim nodded and flicked a switch on the communications console,

"Galileo to engineering,"

"Scott here," came the reply,

"We're ready for launch Scotty," he said as Spock hit a few buttons causing the dash board to light up,

"Aye Captain," there was the sound of shuffling from the other end of the line before Scotty came back, "Ok, opening the doors in three…two…one," Spock pulled a lever and the thrusters burst into life, and the shuttle flew out of the Enterprise.

Jim craned his neck to get a quick look at the Enterprise as they flew away. The light from the nearby star bounced off the ships body causing it to appear like it was glowing. Jim sighed, he would never get used to that beautiful sight, nor would he ever get used to the fact that he was the captain of that ship.

After a few more moments Jim tore himself away from the window and picked his PADD up, it was already loaded with the information on the planet they were going to.

"The Tralurian," Jim read out loud, "Extremely limited contact with the Federation in the past. There have been no missions to their planet – until now," Jim grinned. Spock spun around slightly so as to fully face Jim,

"Captain, surely you should have read this before the mission," he interjected. Jim shrugged,

"I skimmed through it," he replied, "Anyway it's going to take us a bit of time to get down to the planet so why not read it now?" Spock turned away from Jim and back to the console in front of him,

"The purpose of the briefing notes is to give you an idea of what awaits you on the planet, so you may prepare beforehand. It is a little late to prepare once you are already on the shuttle," Jim rolled his eyes,

"Yeah but you've read it and prepared right?"

"Affirmative,"

"So really I don't need to because I have you," Spock raised his eyebrow at Jim who just smiled back at him,

"You should not rely solely on me,"

"Yeah well, with us things rarely go to plan so even if I do prepare it probably won't help,"

"Indeed," Spock said as he flicked two switches and slowly pulled a lever forward. Jim turned back to his PADD and started reading again,

"Little is known about the Tralurian however they claim to have reality altering powers – wait, reality altering‽ What does that mean?" Spock turned to Jim,

"If you'd read the briefing you would know," he said smugly. Jim sighed,

"Spock!" Spock lips twitched slightly,

"The Tralurian claim to have the ability to give a being the chance to relive a given moment of their life. During their correspondents with Starfleet they have offered to give them the opportunity to attempt to fix their greatest regret," Spock said, no doubt quoting the report Jim was reading.

"Wow, I wonder if they'll offer us that opportunity?" Jim mused,

"I'm not sure I would like to relive that moment," Spock said,

"Even if you could change it?"

"But what if I was unsuccessful?" Jim looked into Spock's eyes. While the rest of him seemed impassive his eyes were filled with hurt and sadness. There was no doubt in Jim's mind what Spock's biggest regret would be.

"I understand that," he said, "I don't even know what my biggest regret is. I think, given the option, I'd rather relive a nice moment in my life. The Tralurian can do that to right?" Spock nodded,

"I believe so, however that was not the offer given to Star Fleet, nor is it known whether that offer will be given to us,"

"Yeah you're right," Jim agreed, "I'm getting ahead of myself," he turned back to his PADD however before he could get any further in his reading a shrill alarm filled the cockpit. Spock instantly undid his harness and quickly lent over Jim to reach the screen next to him,

"What's going on Spock?" Jim asked,

"The engine is not getting enough fuel," Spock replied as he sat back up and pushed a lever back,

"Do you know why?"

"Negative, there are one hundred and fifty-seven pieces on this shuttle that could cause a fuel shortage if they malfunction."

"Brilliant," Spock lent back over the screen and clicked a few buttons, "What are you doing now?"

"Running a diagnostic," Spock replied as he climbed out of his chair and head towards the back of the ship.

After a second there was a loud beeping sound, so Jim looked over at the screen,

"Oh god," he gasped, looking at the diagnostics results, "Everything is leaking, fuel, oil and radiator fluid!"

"Press the large blue button to right of the screen," Spock shout back. Jim did as he was told then he quickly freed himself and hurried to the back of the ship to join Spock.

Spock was lying on his front over a large hatch,

"Can you see anything?" Jim asked. Spock sat up, so Jim could see that the fuel tank was prominently on display however there was a large pool surrounding it.

"I can't see where it's leaking from," Jim said. The pool was obviously expanding but it was not clear where the fuel was coming from,

"The tank doesn't appear to have any holes in it," Spock agreed,

"So, we can't fix it?" Jim said. Spock laid down again to try and get a better look inside the bay,

"It's as if there is something destabilising the fuel tank, so it appears to take up physical space however the fuel is not thick enough to remain inside,"

"Is that possible?" Jim questioned,

"In theory a device could be created that would achieve such a thing," Spock said. Jim closed his eyes,

"Can you fix it Spock?" he asked. Spock sat up,

"If I could access the device causing the problem I might be able to disable it, however I cannot see the device and the readings did not indicate that there was a foreign device acting on the ship,"

"What about the radiator and the oil pan? The diagnostic indicated there was also a problem with those,"

"The radiator and the oil pan appear to be in the same condition as the fuel tank," Spock reported. Jim gulped,

"Without the radiator everything is going to get very hot and sooner or later that'll cause the oil and fuel to ignite and the shuttle will explode!" Spock nodded,

"I estimate we have no more than three minutes Captain," he said. Jim jumped to his feet and hurried back to the cockpit. He picked up his communicator and flipped it open.

"Kirk to Enterprise…Come in Enterprise," he tried,

"It's no good Captain," Spock said, "the atmosphere that prevented us from using the transporter is preventing us from contacting the ship." Jim flopped down into his chair.

"So, this is it," he sighed, "I'm so sorry Spock," Spock sat down in his chair,

"There's no need to apologise Captain," he said, "This is not your fault,"

"I know," Jim replied sadly. He glanced down to where his arm hung limply at the side of his chair. Spock's arm was also hanging there, right next to Jim's. In a split-second decision Jim reached out and took hold of Spock's hand and gently squeezed. Spock looked down at their joined hands however before he could say anything there was a loud explosion, and everything went black.


	2. Chapter 2

Jim slowly opened his eyes only for them to be bombarded with a bright light momentarily blinded him. He let out a groan as he tried to sit up however the moment he moved Jim became aware that his head was pounding and he ached all over,

"Jim‽" came a voice that he vaguely recognised as McCoy's. Jim let out another groan then blinked a few times to clear his vision however instead of the familiar sight of the medical bay Jim was greeted with the sight of a room he hadn't seen in years. Frantically Jim sat up, pushing aside his dizziness,

"Whoa," McCoy said, placing his hands on Jim's shoulders, "Careful, just lie back down for a second," Jim glanced around the room as Bones slowly lowered him back to the ground. The room was slightly bigger than he remembered it being but there was no mistaking the fact that he was in his and McCoy's old dorm room at the academy.

"This doesn't make any sense," Jim muttered as Bones picked up his tricorder,

"What doesn't?"

"We were on a shuttle, me and Spock, and it was exploding…I should be dead…Why aren't I dead?" Jim quickly pushed himself up again, "Oh god, I've got to go find Spock!" Bones sighed loudly and took hold of Jim's arm. He guided him over to his bed then firmly pushed him down,

"Sit there and let me finish scanning you," Bones said,

"But Spock…"

"I don't know who Spock is and I don't know anything about and exploding shuttle craft!" Bones snapped. Jim flopped down onto the bed, his thoughts spiralling. He couldn't have dreamt all that, not just the shuttle explosion but everything that had happened sine the last time he was in this room. No, he hadn't made all that up, so somehow, he'd gone back in time to when he was in the academy.

"What happened?" Jim asked,

"You passed out," Bones replied as he angrily shook his tricorder, "It was only for a few seconds but when you woke up you started yelling about being in a shuttle explosion however my tricorder can find nothing wrong with you!"

"What were we doing before I passed out?" Jim questioned causing Bones to frown at him,

"You really don't remember?" he asked,

"I don't know," Jim replied, there was a good chance he did remember however in his memories it was years ago not minutes.

"You just took the Kobayashi Maru again and you managed to beat it somehow, you were very smug…Are you sure you don't remember?" Jim's eyes widened and he sat bolt upright,

"The Kobayashi Maru," he gasped, "If I've just done the Kobayashi Maru then Nero hasn't attacked yet, Vulcan is still OK!" Jim jumped off the bed and hurried over to the door, "Come one," he exclaimed, "We've got to go warn everyone,"

"Warn everyone about what?" Bones cried,

"Nero!"

"Damnit man! I've no idea what that is,"

"He's a Romulan from the future," Jim tried to explain, "He killed my dad and in a few days time he's going to try and blow up Vulcan!" Bones just stared at Jim for a second before marching over to him and taking hold of his arm,

"That's it, we're going to the medical bay,"

"What? No! I'm fine, we don't have time to go to the medical bay!" Jim shouted as he tried to wrench his arm free,

"Jim, not only did you pass out for a reason I can't figure out, but you don't remember what you were doing prior to passing out and now you seem to think you know what is going to happen in the future!"

"But-"

"No buts," Bones argued, "Medical bay. Now."

Bones dragged Jim out of their room and down the corridor to the academy Medical bay,

"Dr McCoy," greeted a pretty blonde doctor as the two of them strode in, "What can I do for you,"

"Hi Christine, I need to run a full exam on Kirk," Bones said, letting go of Jim and pointing at a nearby biobed, "Sit." Jim walked over to the bed and sat down on the edge while Bones and Christine waved various machines at him. Normally he would have flirted shamelessly with Christine but today he had more important things on his mind.

"You seem to be in perfect health Mr Kirk," Christine eventually said. Jim turned to look at Bones who ran his hand over his face and sighed,

"I can't find anything wrong with you," he said reluctantly. Jim grinned,

"Can I go then?" he asked. Bones nodded,

"However, come back here immediately if you feel faint," Jim jumped up and hurried over to the door,

"Will do," he cried over his shoulder before he ran off.

It had been at least a year since Jim had set foot in the academy however he found he still knew the layout like the back of his hand and consequently it didn't take him long to get to his destination.

The corridor to Pike's office was a familiar one. Jim had walked down it many times during his time at the academy but now he ran. He ran as quickly as he could and flung the door to the office open, not caring about who might be in there. Luckily for Jim there was only Pike sitting at his desk,

"Jim!" he cried in shock, "You should really knock before you burst into somebody's office like that,"

"There was no time," Jim gasped, feeling slightly out of breath, "You need to send a message to Vulcan, they're in danger!" Pike frowned,

"Take a seat Jim and tell me what's going on," Jim nodded and pulled up a chair,

"It's kind of hard to explain," he started, "But I've lived this before," Pike raised his eyebrows in disbelief,

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that up until half an hour ago I was years in the future. Me and Spock were going on a mission, but our shuttle was malfunctioning, and it exploded then when I woke up I was here," Jim tried to explain,

"So, you mean to tell me that you've time travelled?" Pike asked. Jim paused for a moment before shaking his head,

"I don't think so," he said, "It's more like I've been transported into the body of my younger self not sent back to join it. Surely, if I'd been sent back in time there would currently be two of me?"

"…I guess that makes sense," Pike said slowly. The two of them were silent for a moment before Jim shook his head,

"But none of that matters," he said, "What matters is that I know, soon, a Romulan called Nero is going to try and blow up Vulcan! The first time I did this he succeeded. Billions of Vulcans died and we need to warn them so that doesn't happen this time," Pike just stared at Jim trying to digest everything he'd just said. Jim sighed, "I know it sounds ridiculous and far fetched but you have to believe me!" Pike shook his head,

"That's quite a story Jim," he said,

"It's not a story, it's-"

"I believe that you think you're telling the truth but Jim, there are so many more plausible explanations as to why you think you've been sent to the past then you actually have," Jim groaned and ran his fingers threw his hair,

"McCoy's already ran a full medical exam on me," Pike shut his eyes,

"Jim-"

"Chris please," Jim begged, "You have to believe me. I know I'm right, I know it's real," Pike ran his hand over his face,

"Ok," he said, "Ok, I'll send a message to Vulcan telling them to be on the lookout but Jim, don't expect much from them," Jim nodded,

"Thank you," he rose from his chair and turned to leave,

"And Jim," Pike called after him, "If I were you I'd focus more on the fact that Commander Spock is trying to determine how you beat his test and he seems more than willing to court martial you," Jim spun around and grinned at Pike,

"Of course, Spock!" he cried, "Do you know where he is?"

"I think you're probably the last person he wants to see right now,"

"I doubt it," Jim said, "I can tell him how I beat his test," Pike sighed,

"I think he's still in the control room for the simulator," Jim nodded and hurried out of the room.


	3. Chapter 3

Spock was sitting with his back to the door when Jim walked into the control room. He was facing a large screen displaying lines upon lines of code.

"Spock?" Jim called out. Spock turned around in his chair to look at him. "Are you my Spock?" Spock raised an eyebrow,

"Cadet Kirk," he said. Jim sighed,

"Right, not my Spock then," he muttered to himself, "that makes this harder,"

"I trust I don't need to tell you what this is," Spock continued, indicating to the code on the screen,

"No, I doubt that you do," Jim replied, taking a step forward. It was obviously the coding for the Kobayashi Maru however upon closer inspection it became apparent that it was the specific section Jim had edited when he hacked the simulation.

"Look," Jim sighed, "I'm sorry that I hacked your test, but we have bigger things to worry about than some cheat simulation right now," Spock raised his eyebrow,

"You admit to hacking the test?" he said. Jim groaned and sat down on a nearby chair,

"Yeah, but-"

"So, you admit to cheating?"

"What? No, look, Spock, that's not important right now," Spock switched off the monitor in front of him and stood up from his chair,

"I shall submit my evidence to the Admiralty and they can decide what to do from there," he said. Jim closed his eyes,

"Are really going to do this?" he asked, "Fine, Ok, yes, I did hack into your test however I would like to maintain that I did not cheat,"

Spock raised his hand to silence Jim,

"I'm not discussing this with you now. You may argue your case at your court martial," he said, "Until then I bid you goodbye Cadet Kirk," with that Spock turned from Jim and marched towards the door. Jim bit his lip, he needed Spock to listen to him, to believe him. If he was going to have any chance of saving Vulcan he was going to need Spock's help,

"Your mum is in danger!" he yelled in a last-ditch attempt to stop Spock from leaving. It worked. Spock froze. Then, after a second, he slowly turned around and narrowed his eyes at Jim. If Jim had thought Spock seemed angry before now he was furious,

"What exactly do you mean by that?" Spock asked with a dangerous edge to his voice. Jim took a deep breath,

"I know you have no logical reason to believe me, but you have to give me a chance. Just listen to me," he started, "You see, I have been transported back in time into the body of my younger self. Because of this, I know that in a few days a Romulan called Nero is going to create a singularity in the centre of Vulcan and the planet will be destroyed along with nearly everybody on it. So, unless we do something Amanda Grayson is going to die!" Jim shouted. Spock shook his head slightly,

"What you're proposing is not possible," he said. Jim stood up and started to pace across the room,

"I know," he cried, "And if anybody had come to me telling me the same thing I probably wouldn't have believed them, but damnit Spock! What do I have to gain by telling you this unless it is the truth?"

"You could be trying to distract me from the crimes you've committed. Logically if I go to Vulcan I will not be here to court martial you," Jim let out a groan of frustration,

"This isn't about the Kobayashi Maru!" he shouted, "The Kobayashi Maru…What I did was brash, egotistical, cocky even, but it wasn't cheating. The rules state that you should use whatever means necessary to save the Kobayashi Maru and that is what I did. Hacking the simulation is not against the rules. It probably should be, but at the moment it's not." Jim spared a glance at Spock however the Vulcan was still staring at him with silent fury in his eyes,

"You told me that," Jim said when Spock didn't say anything, "the first time around, well not the first time around…My first court martial got…interrupted but once we got back to Earth the admiralty insisted on completing it,"

"And I testified on your behalf?" Spock asked with a raised eyebrow,

"Yeah, after that the admiralty had no choice but to rule in my favour." When Spock didn't respond Jim decided to push on, "Look Spock, you've got to help me here, I need you to trust me," Spock shook his head.

"No, what you are suggesting is not only illogical but not scientifically possible. While time travel has been theorised by several scientists, in all of those theories the persons physical body is sent back along with their conscious. And that is ignoring how unlikely the events you have described for the future are," Jim closed his eyes,

"So, you don't believe me?" he sighed. Spock took a step away from Jim and turned back to the door,

"No, there is no proof that what you are saying is true or possible," Jim shook his head and slumped back down into a chair,

"Spock…" he sighed however before he could say anything else to try and convince Spock of the truth the door to the room opened and Uhura walked in clutching a large folder and a textbook,

"Spock, there you are!" she said, smiling brightly at the Vulcan in front of her,

"Cadet Uhura," Spock greeted, "I apologise for missing our session, I have been preoccupied," Uhura waved her hand dismissively,

"Don't worry about it," she said, "we've only missed five minutes and I knew exactly where to find you." She looked past Spock at Jim who was still moping in his chair,

"Kirk," she greeted with a false smile, "I'm surprised that you're not out celebrating after the stunt you pulled today,"

"Nah, I have more important things to do," Jim said sadly, standing up. Spock raised his eyebrow,

"I take it you are here to try and plead your case then?" Uhura asked but Jim just sighed and shook his head, "Ok, well Spock and I have a Vulcan lesson so goodbye, Kirk," Uhura said, leading Spock out of the room. Spock nodded,

"I shall see you at your court martial Cadet," he said over his shoulder as the two of them walked out of the door leaving Jim alone in the control room.


	4. Chapter 4

Jim was sitting on his bed with a computer balanced on his lap when Bones walked into the room,

"What are you doing now?" he asked,

"I'm trying to find my crew," Jim replied without looking up,

"Your crew from the future?" Bones said sceptically, coming to sit down next to Jim, "Wait is that the Starfleet database‽" he exclaimed as soon as he saw what was on Jim's screen,

"Yeah," Jim replied, "I hacked into it, their security is awful. It's worse than the Kobayashi Maru's security if you can believe that," Bones shook his head,

"Won't they be able to trace it back to you?" he asked.

"Nah, I know how to hide my tracks," Bones rolled his eyes,

"Ok so, who's in this crew of your?" Jim glanced at Bones, he knew that the doctor was just humouring him, but he did want to talk about this with someone,

"I'm trying to find Sulu and Chekov," he replied, "they're the only two member of my alpha bridge crew that I don't know the whereabouts of,"

"And what are they?"

"They're my pilot and navigator," Bones nodded,

"And who else is in your crew?"

"Well you for a start," Bones smirked slightly at that,

"Oh? And what am I in your crew?"

"You're my CMO," Jim said, "I'm Captain, Spock's my first officer, Uhura is the communications officer and Scotty's chief engineer," Bones nodded and walked over to his own bed,

"And what are you going to do when you find everyone?"

"I'm going to persuade them to help me," Jim said. Bones raised his eyebrows,

"And how do you plan to do that?" he drawled, "From what you were saying yesterday Spock made it perfectly clear that he didn't believe a word that you said,"

"Yeah, well, I can be very persuasive,"

"Well you clearly weren't yesterday," Jim turned to glare slightly at Bones,

"I'll get through to him eventually," he said. Bones nodded slowly,

"Ok, well just remember, he's Vulcan Jim," Jim shrugged,

"I have experience persuading Spock," Bones sighed,

"Jim, you know that I will help you with whatever it is you're trying to do but-"

"Got it!" Jim cried,

"Got what?"

"I've found the addresses of Sulu and Chekov's dorm rooms," Jim jumped off the bed and hurried over to the door, "come on," he cried when Bones didn't follow him,

"Where are you going?" Bones groaned,

"To find Sulu and Chekov, where do you think?"

"To do what?" Bones sighed, "you can't just go up to them and yell that in a few days lots of people are going to die unless they help you. They won't believe you. You need an actual plan," Jim groaned and flopped back down on to his bed,

"I don't have a plan though," he sighed,

"Well maybe you should come up with one before you run off to gather a team," Jim groaned in frustration and sat up,

"Yeah but…see, this is what I need Spock for. I come up with mad, crazy schemes and Spock makes them work,"

"Well Spock doesn't believe you," Bones snapped, "and despite what you said you don't have a way to persuade him so unless you've suddenly come up with a way of proving your story to him you're on your own, and honestly I don't see you ever being able to get him on your side even if you managed to take him to the future and show him that you were right," at that Jim shot up,

"Bones you're a genius!"

"I've been telling you that for years," Bones replied. Jim rolled his eyes,

"No, I can physically show Spock the future and then he'll have to believe me!" Jim sprinted over to the door, "Thanks, Bones!" he cried over his shoulder, "I'll see you later."

Jim hurried down a corridor looking at the list of names on the door of every office he passed. He really should have tried to find out where Spock was before he set off, but he'd been too excited. He'd looked in all the science labs, the lecture theatres and now he was scouring the small offices that were shared between at least five people each.

He finally reached the last office in the corridor and read the names on the door. The second one on the list said 'Commander Spock'.

Jim grinned to himself then flung the door open. He stumbled into the room only to be confronted with the sight of Spock and Uhura sitting at one of the desks, drinking tea and having a conversation in what could only be Vulcan. Both of them looked up in shock at the sudden intruder,

"I can prove I'm telling the truth!" Jim gasped. Spock raised his eyebrow,

"Cadet Kirk?"

"About the future. About Vulcan, I can prove all of it," It was only then that Jim really took in Uhura sitting there staring at him, "Sorry for interrupting,"

"What are you talking about Kirk?" Uhura asked however neither Jim or Spock offered her an answer,

"You are not interrupting," Spock said, "We have just finished our lesson," Uhura sighed and picked up her books,

"I'll take that as my que to leave then," she muttered as she pushed past Jim and walked out of the room.

"How do you intend to prove yourself?" Spock asked, once Uhura had closed the door behind her,

"I need you to mind meld with me," Jim said, stepping forward and sinking into the chair Uhura had just vacated, "meld with me and I'll show you everything that happened," Spock raised his eyebrow again,

"You do not know what you're asking for," he said,

"I do," Jim said, "I've had people melded with me before and this is the only way I can think of to prove to you that I'm telling the truth," Jim closed his eyes "I need you to believe me," he whispered, "I need you Spock," Spock stared at Jim for a moment before slowly nodding,

"Ok then," he said and raised his hands to Jim's face. Spock paused just before he actually touched Jim and gave him a questioning look. Jim nodded and gave Spock an encouraging smile. Spock nodded back then moved forward so that he was touching Jim's face. He closed his eyes then quietly said,

"My mind to your mind, my thoughts to your thoughts," Jim felt his and Spock's mind collide.

Everything was suddenly a swirl of bright colours and crushing pressure. However, the brightness only lasted a few moments before everything went black. Jim could feel Spock's presence swirling around him. He could sense a slight thrill coming off him at the prospect of being exposed to an unfamiliar mind. No matter how many times he did this Jim would never get used to the sensation of being in a meld.

It took a moment for Jim to gather his bearings but once he did he gathered up all his memories of Nero's attack on Vulcan and started to push them towards Spock. The images of all the shattered star ships. Him and Sulu on the drill. The look of utter devastation on Spock's face when he reappeared on the Enterprise.

Before Jim could play any more of his memories Spock broke the meld. He jumped back from Jim gasping and with tears in his eyes. Jim was vaguely aware of the fact that there were tears running down his face too,

"It's gone, it's all gone," Spock whispered, Jim shook his head,

"No, not yet," he said, resisting the urge to wrap his arms around Spock, "we can still stop it, but you need to work with me," Spock nodded,

"I will help you," he said, "But I need to meditate immediately. We shall meet tomorrow morning to discuss a plan,"

"Ok," Jim agreed, "that will give us two days. Do you want to meet in my dorm room at nine?" Spock nodded,

"I shall see you then," he said before walking out of the room.

Jim took a deep breath and glanced around the office. He saw a box of tissues on one of the other desks. He gingerly stood up and took one before heading out of the door. However, before he could take more then a step he found himself being slammed into the wall by Uhura,

"What are you up to?" she hissed,

"I'm sorry?"

"You're up to something Kirk," she said, "I mean you're always up to something but this time it involves Spock and I'm not going to let you hurt Spock," Jim smiled slightly,

"I promise you that I will never intentionally hurt Spock," he said, "and right now I am trying my hardest to stop Spock from being hurt," Uhura scoffed slightly,

"Really?"

"Yes, look, me and Spock are having a meeting tomorrow morning in my room, come along and I promise I'll explain everything," Uhura narrowed her eyes at Jim however she released her hold on him took a step back,

"Ok," she decided, "But if this is a trick-"

"It's not," Jim promised, Uhura nodded,

"I'll see you tomorrow then," she said. Jim nodded and Uhura set off back down the corridor.


	5. Chapter 5

"Why did you have to start this meeting so early?" Bones groaned as he took a large gulp of coffee, "No, scratch that, why did you have to hold it here? You could have held it anywhere else and then you wouldn't be disturbing me!" Jim smirked slightly,

"Exactly, if I'd held it anywhere else you wouldn't be there,"

"Ugh, ok but that doesn't explain why you has to hold it this early in the morning?"

"Because we're working on a tight schedule here Bone!" Jim cried. Bones let out a loud groan and flopped down on his bed. However, before he could make any more complaints there was a knock on the door. Jim hurried over and flung it open to find himself face to face with a familiar Vulcan,

"Cadet Kirk," Spock greeted,

"Spock," Jim grinned. Bones rolled his eyes,

"So, you're the person Jim hasn't shut up about these last few days," he said with a slight shake of his head. Spock raised his eyebrow and looked Bones up and down,

"That's an unhealthy amount of coffee," he commented. Bones scowled,

"I'm a doctor," he said, "I have a much better idea of what's healthy than you do,"

"Aww," Jim smiled, "I've missed this. Don't ever change you two," Jim resisted the urge to hug the two of them, knowing fully well that neither of them would appreciate it.

Spock frowned slightly at that however he elected to ignore Jim and glanced around the room,

"I'm sorry about the mess," Jim said as he bent down to pick a few pieces of clothing off the floor, "It doesn't normally look like this in here," Bones snorted,

"No, it normally looks a lot worse," Jim rolled his eyes and walked over to his desk,

"Hang on, let me clear this stuff up then you can sit down," he said, picking up a large stack of books from his desk chair. As Jim went to put the books down there was a snort from the still open door,

"Oh wow," they all turned to see Uhura standing in the doorway, "if this is what this room looks like when you have company I'd hate to see to see what it looks like when you're alone,"

"Hello to you too," Jim said, "Come in and take a seat," Uhura looked around,

"Where?"

"Just give me a second," Jim sighed, "Bones can you clear your desk chair so Uhura can sit down please?" Bones sighed but got up and started clearing a seat for Uhura while Jim moved his armful of books and clothes over to his bed,

"Ok, Spock," he said, "you can sit there," Spock didn't move however he just stared at the pile of stuff on Jim's bed,

"That is not putting them away," he remarked. Jim groaned,

"I'll put them away later," he said, "we have bigger things to worry about right now,"

"Speaking of which," Uhura said, "you promised to tell me what's going on,"

"Yes, I did," Jim agreed. He took a deep breath then said, "Tomorrow a Romulan named Nero is going to try and blow up Vulcan and if we don't do anything to try and stop him he will succeed, killing billions of Vulcans and nearly every Star Fleet cadet in the process," Uhura glanced over at Spock however his face remained blank,

"Really?" she said,

"Yes,"

"And you know this because?"

"Because I've lived this once before. You see, up until two days ago I was in the future," Uhura gaped at Jim for a moment,

"So, you're saying you're a time traveller?" Jim sighed,

"Something like that," Uhura shook her head,

"Kirk, have you gone mad?" Jim shook his head,

"I know I sound crazy, but I promise you I am not making this up," Uhura turned to look at Bones and Spock,

"You two don't believe him, do you?"

"God no," Bones said, "But I'm going to help him, if nothing else to stop him from doing something stupid or getting himself killed,"

"Spock?"

"He's telling the truth Nyota," Spock said quietly causing Uhura's mouth to fall open once more,

"So, you're going to help him?"

"Indeed," Uhura closed her eyes and took a deep breath,

"Ok," she said with a slight shake of her head as if she couldn't believe what she was about to say, "I'll help you try and stop this Romulan," Jim grinned,

"Brilliant!"

"So…What's your plan?"

"Ah, well, you see, that's one of the things I need help with," Uhura groaned,

"You don't even have a plan?"

"Well I have some pieces of plan," Uhura sighed,

"Ok, well, what do you have?"

"The first time we defeated Nero by colliding his ship with the red matter,"

"What's red matter?" Bones asked,

"Red matter is the thing Nero uses to create the singularity that ultimately destroys Vulcan,"

"So, crashing it into his ship…?"

"Creates a blackhole that his ship gets sucked into," Jim explained.

"And you are proposing that we do that again?" Spock asked. Jim nodded,

"The problem is we have to get the ship far enough away from Vulcan that the black hole doesn't also destroy the planet,"

"Hang on," Uhura said, "Let's start at the beginning, how are we getting to Vulcan?"

"I can sort that out," Spock said, "I have the access codes to the shuttle hanger where many of the science vessels are kept,"

"So, we steal a ship?" Bones ask dubiously,

"Not steal," Jim said, "Borrow, we'll give it back,"

"Oh, and I'm sure Star Fleet will care about that distinction so much,"

"We will undoubtably all get court martialled for doing this," Spock pointed out. Jim sighed,

"Right, yeah…Look I will tell Star Fleet this was all my idea and I forced you all to come then it'll be only me that'll get in trouble and your three's careers will all be safe,"

"Jim…" Bones sighed,

"No, there's no point all of us getting in trouble, especially when two of you don't even believe me,"

"We're still helping you though," Uhura pointed out,

"No," Jim said, "I need your help, but I don't need you all to take the fall for me," Spock opened his mouth as if to argue but Jim got in there first, "this is non-negotiable," Bones nodded sadly,

"Ok Jim, Ok," He said. Uhura nodded slightly then took a deep breath,

"Ok, so that's how we get a ship, what happens next?" she asked, dragging the topic of conversation back to the plan,

"Well Nero will try to drill a hole to the centre of Vulcan which he'll intend to drop the red matter into, obviously we need to stop him before that happens,"

"If he's using the red matter how do we get hold of it so that we can blow him up?" Bones asked,

"We need to get on board his ship," Jim replied, "The red matter is on a small ship that Nero has captured, originally we set that smaller ship on a collision course,"

"So, we need to get onto Nero's ship?" Uhura checked,

"Yeah, we can beam over,"

"But surely it will be a moving target?" Spock asked. Jim nodded,

"Yeah but I know a formula that we can input into the transporter controls that'll get us on board," Spock's eyes widened,

"How does that work?" he asked, "Does it-"

"I don't know Spock," Jim interrupted, "I just know the formula, but I can introduce you to the guy who invented it. Speaking of which, I know a guy who can tell us when the attack is about to start and when he tells us that we'll have roughly an hour,"

"You know a guy?" Uhura questioned,

"Yeah, he works on Delta Vega," Jim said in a way of an explanation, "I'll send him a message later but I'm positive he'll help us, he has nothing better to do," Bones rolled his eyes,

"Sure," he said, "So you know how to get us on the ship?"

"Yes, and that brings us to my original problem, how do we get Nero's ship far enough away from Vulcan?"

"If we're already on board can't we just fly it away?" Bones asked. Uhura frowned,

"Won't the ship be overrun with Romulans?" she asked,

"There are less Romulans on board than you'd think," Jim replied, "Me and Spock managed to take a lot of them out last time,"

"So, flying the ship away?" Bones pushed but Jim shook his head,

"None of us know how to pilot the ship,"

"If none of us can fly how are we getting to Vulcan in the first place?" Bones cried,

"I can pilot small ships," Spock said, "However I am not confident in my ability to pilot a ship the size of the Narada,"

"Plus, he needs to be the one flying the small ship," Jim said,

"So, we need to recruit a pilot?" Bones said,

"And somebody to pilot the stolen science vessel while Spock's not there," Uhura added,

"Not to mention somebody to beam us back from the Narada," Jim grinned,

"I know just the people," he declared. Bones groaned,

"Let me guess, those two people you were stalking yesterday?" Spock raised his eyebrow at the word stalking,

"They're part of my crew in the future," Jim supplied, "Hikaru Sulu and Pavel Chekov, they're the best pilot and navigator I know," Uhura frowned slightly,

"And you think you can persuade them to help us by tomorrow morning?" she asked. Jim sighed and ran his hand over his face,

"I don't know," he said, "but I've got to try," Uhura nodded,

"Ok, you go and try and recruit them now, we'll gather anything else we think we'll need," Jim nodded and rose from his bed,

"Thank you so much," he said before running from the room.

Spock and Uhura also got up and walked towards the door,

"Are you Ok?" Uhura asked as she held the door open for Spock,

"I am functioning optimally," he replied. Uhura smiled sadly,

"It's Ok not to be," she said, "we were just discussing the near extinction of your race,"

"I contacted my mother last night," Spock said, "And tried to persuade her and my father to leave the planet,"

"What did she say?" Uhura asked,

"She has not replied yet," Spock answered, Uhura reached out and touched Spock's arm,

"I'll see you tomorrow," she said sadly, letting the door shut behind them.


	6. Chapter 6

Jim was standing at the edge of the cafeteria watching as all the cadets got their lunch. He was scanning the crowd looking for the remaining members of his crew, he'd already spotted Chekov, he was sitting by himself in the corner reading while he ate, but he was waiting for Sulu before he approached him.

After about ten minutes Jim saw Sulu walk in and head straight for a replicator,

"Hikaru Sulu!" He called out as he hurried over. Sulu looked up to see who had called his name and his eyes instantly fell upon Jim,

"James Kirk," he replied,

"You already know who I am?" Jim asked as Sulu replicated himself something that looked like a weird soup,

"Of course," Sulu replied, "everyone knows who you are. You've been the talk of the academy ever since you beat the Kobayashi Maru," Jim nodded slightly,

"Right, yeah…Look, I have a proposal for you, can we talk for a moment?" Sulu frowned slightly,

"You have a proposal for me?" Jim nodded and Sulu smiled, "yeah, of course we can talk,"

"Now?"

"As long as you don't have a problem with me eating while we chat,"

"Not at all," Jim replied then nodded towards Chekov's table, "Can we talk over there? I also have a proposal for him," Sulu seemed to deflate slightly at the idea that Jim wasn't solely interested in him, but he nodded at Jim and the two of them walked over to Chekov,

"Can we join you?" Jim asked. Chekov looked up from his book and grinned at the two of them,

"Of course!" he said. Jim and Sulu both pulled up a chair and sat down and Sulu instantly tucked into his lunch.

"Ok so I'm putting together a team," Jim started,

"And you vant us to be part of it?" Chekov guessed. Jim smiled, he's missed Chekov's enthusiasm

"Yes exactly,"

"And what would this team be doing exactly?" Sulu asked,

"I was just getting to that. You see tomorrow Vulcan is going to be attacked and I have a plan to save it but I need a kickass pilot and navigator," Sulu frowned,

"Vulcan is going to be attacked and Starfleet is letting you put together the team?" He asked,

"Well not exactly…" Sulu sighed,

"So, this mission is illegal?"

"Well technically…" Jim said, "But if we don't do something Vulcan is going to be destroyed and I'm not willing to stand by and let that happen. And besides, I plan to take full responsibility for the entire thing, so you should come out of it unscathed," Sulu sighed again but before he could say anything Chekov interrupted,

"I vill help you!" he announced causing Jim's mouth to fall open,

"You will?"

"Of course. It vill help save Wulcan!" Jim grinned, he'd thought this was going to be much harder,

"What about you?" He said, turning to Sulu,

"I don't know," he said, "I need more information. What would I be doing?"

"Well you'd be flying the ship we have to Vulcan and then once we're there you'd beam across with us to a Romulan ship-"

"A Romulan ship?" Sulu gasped,

"Yeah, and then once on board I'd need you to fly it as far away as possible before Chekov beams us back," Sulu stared at Jim with wide eyes,

"You want me to infiltrate a Romulan ship?" he asked dubiously,

"Well when you put it like that…"

"Look Kirk, I may be a good pilot but I'm not a good fighter,"

"Yes, you are!" Jim cried, "I've seen you with a sword, you're awesome! There isn't anyone I'd rather have with me on this mission," Sulu opened his mouth as if to reply but Jim kept going, "Plus you wouldn't be alone on the ship and, with the exception of Spock, everyone there's sole focus would be to get you into the pilot seat,"

"Wait Spock?" Sulu asked, "As in Commander Spock?"

"Yes," Jim replied in confusion,

"You're telling me you managed to get Commander Spock onboard with your plan?"

"Oh yeah, I wouldn't be able to pull the plan off without Spock," Sulu closed his eyes and sighed,

"Fine," he said, "I'll help you," Jim grinned,

"Thank you so much!" He exclaimed, "Both of you!" Chekov smiled back at Jim,

"So, vhat's the plan?" he asked.

Jim spent to rest of lunch explaining the plan to Sulu and Chekov. Once he was done he felt for the first time like this might actually work.

-x-

Bones and Jim walked silently side by side towards the shuttle bay early the next morning. As they approached they could see that the other four were already there waiting for them. Once they reached the doors Spock turned to Jim who nodded at him and then, without anyone saying a word, Spock punched in the access code and the door sprung open.

Everyone stood frozen for a second, just staring at all the ships but then Spock took a step forward and they all filed inside. They followed Spock over to a small black ship with the words 'The Atom' printed on the side. Spock again entered a code and the door to the ship slid open and they all snuck inside.

Sulu sat down in the pilot's seat while Spock and Chekov sat down either side of him. Uhura sat down next to the communications station and Bones and Jim took the two remaining seats by the door.

"Starfleet will be alerted to our presence as soon as we start the take off procedure," Spock said as the console came to life. Sulu nodded as he flicked a switch and pressed a couple of buttons. He glanced down at a screen in front of him then flicked another switch,

"Ok, we're ready for launch," Sulu announced,

"Is everyone strapped in?"

"Yeah," Jim turned to glance at Bones who had his eyes closed and was breathing deeply.

Sulu pushed a leaver and the engines kicked in. Not a second later a loud alarm went off and the room glowed red. However, the roof of the hanger was pulling back to reveal the open sky,

"We have 0.8924 minutes before somebody will arrive and shut the roof," Spock said,

"That seems like a flawed system," Uhura remarked,

"Well thank god it is," Jim said, "Or we wouldn't have a ship."

Sulu pushed the lever further back and the ship sped up. At that moment somebody burst into the hanger. However, they were too late. In just a couple of seconds Sulu piloted the shuttle through the gap and they flew away into the atmosphere.

Jim grinned as soon as they were clear of the building,

"Well done Sulu," he said, unfastening his seatbelt and standing up. "Spock can you help me input the equations into the transporter please," Spock nodded and followed Jim to the end of the ship. Jim knelt down at the console and brought up the programming,

"You've said that we're all your crew from the future," Spock said, kneeling down next to him,

"Yeah, you see after the Nero incident Pike made me Captain of The Enterprise and everyone here is part of me senior bridge crew," Spock nodded,

"And what am I in your crew?" he asked,

"You're my first officer," Jim said with a slight smile, "And my chief science officer," Spock rose his eyebrow slightly,

"So, we make a good team then?"

"The best," Jim said with a grin as Spock stood back up. Jim scrolled through the programming looking for the right section to edit,

"Spock can you…" Jim turned to see Spock looking dejected at his communicator, "Spock?"

"My mother says she and my father are unable to leave Vulcan at the time,"

"Oh Spock," Jim sighed and walked over to him. If Spock were anybody else Jim would have pulled him into a hug. However, before Jim reached the Vulcan Spock's eyes rolled back, his legs gave way and he fell onto the floor.


	7. Chapter 7

Spock's head was pounding, he felt as if he'd been hit with a baseball pat. Hard. He kept his eyes closed as he tried to control the pain, breathing deeply in and out. Faintly he heard Jim yell for McCoy.

After a couple seconds Spock had managed to get the pain under control so he slowly opened his eyes and blinked a few times. He was greeted by the sight of Jim, McCoy and Uhura leaning over him,

"Give him some room," McCoy ordered, pushing the other two back slightly. Spock carefully sat up and took in his surroundings,

"Where are we?" he asked Jim. McCoy frowned,

"You don't remember?" He asked. Spock shook his head slightly as McCoy started to scan him with a tricorder.

"On a shuttle going to Vulcan," Jim supplied, shuffling slightly closer. Spock frowned slightly,

"Why are we going to New Vulcan?" he asked.

"New Vulcan?" Uhura questioned as Jim's eyes widened,

"Spock, what's the last thing you remember?" he asked quietly,

"You were holding my hand…" Spock trailed off, but Jim grinned hopefully at him,

"What else was happening?" he prompted. Spock just sat there silently for a second before he slowly said,

"We were sitting together in the front of our shuttle, oil, fuel and radiator fluid were leaking and there was nothing we could do to stop it. You took hold of my hand then I assume the shuttle exploded…" Jim beamed,

"I've missed you so much!" he exclaimed then threw his arms around Spock and, much to Uhura's shock, Spock didn't pull away,

"Careful!" McCoy cried, as his tricorder beeped, "According to this his blood pressure is too high, his heart beat is too fast and his temperature it too low," Jim glanced down at the reading on McCoy's tricorder,

"Yeah, that's normal for him," he said causing McCoy to raise his eyebrows.

"Captain what's going on?" Spock asked as he tried to stand up, however McCoy's hand on his shoulder stopped him from rising,

"Right, well, to put it simply we're in the past," Jim stated causing Spock to raise his eyebrow,

"Please clarify,"

"Three days ago, I woke up in my dorm and Bones told me I'd just done the Kobayashi Maru," Spock's eyes widened slightly,

"So, when you said we were going to Vulcan you actually meant Vulcan?" Jim nodded,

"We can still save it Spock," Jim whispered, "We can still save her." It was then that Uhura decided to interrupt the tender moment,

"What's going on?" she asked. Spock turned to look at her,

"Jim and I were sent back in time by a race called the Tralurian to fix our greatest regrets,"

"Oh!" Jim cried, jumping to his feet, "That explains it! But…why did they feel the need to crash our shuttle to do that?"

"We do not know it was them that destroyed our shuttle," Spock said as he shook McCoy off and stood up, "This may have been their attempt to save us." Before Jim could really digest what Spock had just said Sulu shouted out from the front of the ship,

"We're being hailed!" The four of them all glanced at each other before hurrying off to the front of the ship.

"It's Starfleet," Sulu informed them. Before anyone could say anything, Spock marched over to the communications console and pulled off the front panel. He then plucked two wires out and the communications panel shut down,

"Well that's one way of dealing with that," McCoy sighed. Spock ignored him and sat down in front of the panel,

"Spock?" Jim asked,

"I am fixing it so that we cannot receive any communications from a Starfleet frequency unless it's from the Delta Vega base," Spock turned to Jim, "I am assuming that's part of your plan?" Jim nodded,

"Yeah, I have Scotty on watch," Spock nodded as he stood up and started fiddling with the computer, "I'll fill you in on the full plan the second we have a spare moment,"

"So, we can still send communications?" Uhura asked, leaning over Spock's shoulder,

"Affirmative." Sulu turned to the rest of the crew,

"We have arrived at Vulcan," he announced. Spock turned to Jim. His face seemed blank to everyone but Jim who could see the silent pleading in his eyes. Jim nodded at him,

"Go," he said. Spock spun on his heals and hurried back to the transporter pad,

"Wait you're not going down there are you?" McCoy asked they all followed Spock,

"It'll be safe for the hour or so," Jim said, walking to stand behind the transporter controls. Spock followed him to input the coordinates.

"Do you want me to come with you?" Uhura asked as Spock went to stand on the transporter pad.

"Negative," Spock replied before turning to Jim, missing the flash of hurt in Uhura's eyes, "Energise," he said then he disappeared.

Spock materialised on the surface of a planet he hadn't set foot on in so long. He looked around wanting to take in all of his surroundings. He almost wished it was night time so he could look up and see all the stars in the specific arrangement he never thought he'd see again.

Spock closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Everything was so overwhelming, and he just needed a second to centre himself, his emotions were threatening to spill over and he couldn't let that happen.

After a moment Spock opened his eyes again and then quickly set off down the road. He hoped his parents were at their house as he didn't know where to start looking for them if they weren't. He arrived at their house and hurried up to the front door. He reached out to open the door which, to his relief, wasn't locked and therefore swung open with the slightest push.

"Mother?" Spock called out,

"Spock?" Amanda walked out of the kitchen and smiled. Spock opened his mouth to reply but he couldn't find any words, he just stared at Amanda. His mother was standing there, right in front of him, he could touch her if her just reached out-

"Spock? Are you Ok?" Amanda asked walking towards him. Spock closed his eyes and took a few steady breaths, trying as hard as he could to calm himself down,

"I am well Mother," he replied eventually, as soon as he opened his eyes he could see that Amanda didn't believe him, but he spoke again before she could say anything, "Is Father here?" he asked. Amanda nodded,

"He's upstairs in his office," she replied. Amanda lead Spock upstairs and knocked on a big door at the top of the stair,

"Come in," Amanda pushed the door open to reveal Sarek sitting at his desk,

"Look who's here," Amanda said. Sarek eyed his son standing in the doorway,

"Spock," he said,

"Sarek,"

"What brings you here?"

"I need you to come with me," Spock said, "Vulcan is in grave danger and-" Spock glanced at Amanda, "You will die if you stay here," Sarek raised his eyebrow,

"Clarify,"

"A Romulan named Nero has sworn revenge on a Vulcan and plans to blow up this planet. There is a 67.543% chance he will succeed,"

"The Romulan empire hasn't made any attempt to interact with the Federation in three years,"

"He doesn't work for the Romulan empire," Spock said. Before Sarek could reply Spock's communicator buzzed. Spock pulled it out of his pocket and flipped it open,

"Spock here,"

"Just got a message from Scotty," came Jim's voice, "A ship has just landed on Delta Vega, chances are it's you-know-who so we don't have long. You need to beam back up now,"

"Affirmative, just give me a moment," Spock agreed before shutting his communicator,

"Who was that?" Amanda asked, however before Spock could reply the ground shook. Amanda reached out and grab Spock's arm to steady herself. Spock's communicator went off again,

"Spock, we need to-"

"Affirmative Captain," Spock snapped his communicator shut and turned to his father,

"That was Nero starting a drill to the core of Vulcan," Spock explained, "We need to go now," Sarek stood up and strode towards the door,

"We need to get the High Council," he said,

"No, you need to come with me,"

"It is our duty to protect our culture,"

"It won't matter, there will be nothing to protect," Spock said as the three of them exited the house. Amanda glanced down at Spock's hand on her arm. He hadn't let go of her since the shaking started. Spock opened his communicator once more,

"Spock to Atom,"

"Kirk here,"

"Three to beam up." The three of them shimmered and dematerialised.

The moment they reappeared on the ship Spock jumped off the transporter pad and marched over to Jim. Jim glanced at Amanda then back at Spock,

"Are you Ok?"

"I am fine," Spock replied,

"You're fine?" Jim asked sceptically however Spock ignored him. Suddenly Uhura yelled out from the cockpit,

"We're being hailed," Jim and Spock hurried into the cockpit followed by Amanda and Sarek,

"On screen," Jim said. Nero's face filled the screen,

"Spock," he said in way of greeting. Spock didn't reply,

"Who are you?" McCoy asked,

"I am Nero," he replied. Both McCoy and Uhura glanced at Jim with wide eyes,

"You were right," Uhura gasped quietly however Nero didn't seem at hear her as he turned his attention back to Spock, "There is something I would like you to see," he said,

"I am not interested in anything you could show me," Nero shook his head,

"It doesn't matter what you are interested in Spock, it's about what you deserve! You took everything from me so now I'm going to take everything from you,"

"I haven't taken anything from you," Spock said evenly,

"Not yet, but you will. Now I demand your Captain beam over to my ship,"

"I am the highest ranking Starfleet officer here," Spock said as Jim took hold of his arm,

"Spock you can't,"

"No," Nero said with a slight shake of his head, "I can't have you, you need to see what is about to happen," Nero's eyes fell upon Jim,

"Captain Kirk," he said, "You'll do nicely,"

"Kirk is a Cadet," Spock said, stepping in front of Jim, "with the exception of myself every other member of Starfleet aboard this ship is a cadet,"

"I guess I'll have to wait for the rest of Starfleet then," Nero said, "Keep watching Spock," with that he terminated the transmission. The cockpit was silent however everyone had turned to stare at Spock,

"You're the Vulcan he wants revenge on?" Amanda asked, and Jim squeezed Spock's arm,

"Doctor would you please escort my parents out of the cockpit," Spock said before sitting down in a chair next to Sulu,

"We need to make our move now," Jim said, "Before Star Fleet arrive because as soon as they get here they will be blown up,"

"Can't ve just call them and varn them not to come?" Chekov asked,

"We stole a ship from them, they're not going to listen to us," Jim remark. Spock nodded slightly in agreement before saying.

"Now might be a good time for you to tell me the plan."


	8. Chapter 8

Spock and Jim were sat in the cockpit of the Atom discussing Jim's plan while the rest of the crew pretended not to be listening in,

"The only two people who actually need to beam over to the Narada are myself and Lieu- Cadet Sulu," Spock informed Jim causing him to frown,

"That's not true," He said after a second, "there needs to be at least one person to cover Sulu once we get to the bridge,"

"I agree!" Sulu shouted over his shoulder. Jim pointed at him and raised his eyebrows,

"See?" Spock sighed,

"Ok," he conceded, "however it is not required that we beam nearly our entire crew across. That is not logical,"

"Why not?"

"If we fail there needs to be people here who can inform Star Fleet of what's happened and try to and disable to drill," Spock said, "Also the fewer of us on board the Narada the fewer of us that are in danger," Jim groaned,

"Ok, you're right," he said before turning to the rest of the crew, "Spock, Sulu and I shall beam over to the Narada. Chekov be prepared to beam all three of us back the moment you get the signal," Chekov nodded. Uhura stood up and said,

"Are you sure you don't need me to come with you?" Spock shook his head,

"It will be better if you stay here, but Nyota, would you please keep an eye on my mother while I'm gone?" Uhura smiled slightly,

"Of course, Spock."

Sulu climbed out of his chair and Spock picked up three phasers. He handed one to both Jim and Sulu then the three of them walked out of the cockpit. Chekov also got up and followed them into the transporter room.

"Spock!" the group turned to see Amanda hurrying towards them, "Where are you going?" she asked,

"We're beaming over to Nero's ship," Spock explained simply. Amanda gave a small, sad smile,

"Good luck," she said,

"Luck is illogical," Spock said. Amanda nodded,

"I know," she replied.

Chekov walked over to the control panel and Jim, Spock and Sulu walked over to the transporter pad. Jim and Sulu took their places however Spock turned around to look at Amanda. She smiled at him again and that was all it took. Spock strode back towards Amanda and pulled her into a quick hug.

After a brief second Spock let his mother go and he stepped back on to the transporter pad. He stared directly ahead, pointedly ignoring the confused gazes of Jim and Sulu,

"Energise," he said. The three of them disappeared leaving behind a gobsmacked Amanda.

They materialised in a room full of Romulans. They all drew their phasers and fired. Jim instantly hit two Romulans and turned to Spock,

"Are you sure you're Ok?" he asked. Spock turned and fired at another Romulan,

"Please focus Captain," he said before grabbing Jim's wrist and pulling him behind some crates. Sulu hit three Romulans then dived down to join Jim and Spock.

"Where's the bridge?" Sulu asked,

"I don't know," Jim replied as Spock peaked over the top of the crates,

"What do you mean you don't know?" Sulu hissed however before Jim could reply Spock spoke,

"Cover me," he said and ran forward. Jim and Sulu both lent out from behind the crates ready to fire at anyone who went after Spock.

Spock knelt down next to one of the Romulans and placed his hand on the side of his face.

"What's he doing?" Sulu asked,

"Finding out where we need to go," Jim replied as he fired his phaser. Spock withdrew from the Romulan and hurried back to the other two.

"The bridge is two floors up," Spock said. Jim nodded,

"How long do we have?" he asked,

"Approximately 41.2694 minutes," Spock said, Jim raised his eyebrows but didn't comment,

"Ok," he said, "Me and Sulu will go to the bridge, I'll draw Nero away while, Sulu, you fly us as far away from here as possible, Spock, you go and find the Ambassadors ship," Spock nodded,

"Don't fly away until I have disabled the drill," he added,

"Just tell me when you're ready," Sulu said then the three of them set off.

Jim and Sulu ran on to the bridge. They both instantly fired their phaser, knocking most of the Romulans out. Sulu ran off to the side while Jim locked eyes with Nero.

"Captain Kirk," Nero said, "you look exactly like your picture in Earth's history books," Nero stepped forward and swung at Jim, "It's a shame they won't get that future now," he said.

Jim swung to punch Nero however the Romulan dodged out of the way and hit Jim causing him to stumble backwards. Nero then swiftly kneed Jim in the stomach causing Jim to fall to the floor winded. Nero sneered at Jim however as he turned to walk away Jim reached and pulled Nero's leg causing him to stumble. Jim then jumped up and landed a punch on Nero's jaw. The Romulan let out a roar and shoved Jim into a wall.

Sulu crept over to the pilots seat and pushed the unconscious Romulan who was sat there out of the seat and took over. He glanced down at the controls. They were more complicated and advanced than any set of controls he'd seen before. He took a communicator out of his pocket and flipped it open,

"Come in Spock," he said,

"Spock here," Spock replied,

"How much longer?"

"Just a few seconds…" There was then a loud crash from the other end of the line, "Go!" Spock cried. No sooner had Spock said that than a voice rang out across the bridge saying,

"Captain Nero, the Vulcan ship has been taken and the drill has been destroyed!" Nero, who had been holding Jim up by his neck, took a step back causing Jim to crumple to the floor,

"SPOCK!" He screamed. He turned and for the first time he seemed to take in the fact that every other Romulan on the bridge was unconscious. His eyes fell upon Sulu and he started to march forward. Sulu took that as his que to reach out and pulled a lever in front of him. The ship jerked backwards causing everyone to fall down.

Nero let out a cry and jumped up again. Sulu pushed a different lever causing everyone to fall down again however this time the ship flew off away from Vulcan. Nero reached out and punched Sulu sending him sprawling across the bridge.

Jim finally managed to climb back to his feet and pull his communicator out.

"Spock," he called out, "Are we at the minimum safe distance?" just as Jim finished speaking Nero reached out and pulled the lever causing to ship the stop,

"Affirmative Captain," Spock replied, "I have set my ship on a collision course," Jim shut his communicator glanced back at Sulu just in time to see him pull Nero back away from the console. Jim open his communicator once more and cried,

"Chekov, beam us out of here!" the transported beam swirled around him and Sulu, and the two of them disappeared.


	9. Chapter 9

Spock looked across the transporter pad to see Jim and Sulu standing there. Sulu had a split lip and a black eye however, other than that, he seemed fine. Jim on the other had was bleeding in several places. Part of his hair was stuck to his forehead with blood and there was a slight swelling around his eye. Both his lip and nose were bleeding and he was holding his right arm protectively against his chest. He also had a notable limp as he took a step forward. Bones ran over and grabbed hold of Jim,

"I'm fine," Jim mumbled,

"No, you're not," Bones cried as he lowered Jim to the floor, "don't move I'm going to get my med kit," he growled before turning to the other two, "You stay here," he said to Sulu, "You…"

"I am uninjured," Spock said.

Bones looked Spock up and down, "Ok, but I am checking you over as soon as I'm finished with these two,"

Spock nodded, "I will be in the cockpit." Spock strode out of the transporter room and down to the cockpit. He slipped into an empty chair and opened a channel to the Enterprise,

"This is the USS Enterprise," came the voice of the Enterprise's communications officer,

"This is Commander Spock, I need to talk to Captain Pike,"

There was a moment of silence from the Enterprise before Pike came on to the screen, "Spock!" he exclaimed, trying to mask the slight surprise in his voice,

"Captain," Spock greeted before saying, "Nero's ship has been destroyed Vulcan is safe,"

Pike's eyes widened slightly, "Do you know what's happened here?" he asked,

"Affirmative Captain," Spock replied, "I'll write the admiralty a report when we get back,"

There was a moment of silence before Pike asked, "Would it have anything to do with you, Kirk and a bunch of cadets going AWOL this morning?"

"Something like that,"

Pike snorted slightly, "Speaking of which, the fact that you stole a science craft has rather been over shadowed by whatever it is that has happened here however, before this situation arose the admiralty did issue some orders, so you are ordered to bring the Atom back to Earth. Upon your arrival everyone involved will be court martialled,"

Spock shook his head slightly, "That will not be necessary. I take full responsibility for everything," he said,

However, before he could say anything else Jim burst into the room and dove in front of Spock, "No, you don't. No, he doesn't,"

"Damn it Jim," Bones yelled.

Pike surveyed the state of Jim, "What happened to you?" he asked.

Jim shrugged, "Got beat up by a Romulan, but Spock does not take full responsibility. This was entirely my fault. It was my idea and my plan. The others didn't do anything,"

"Jim, I stole the ship," Spock said.

Pike raised his eyebrows, "Are you both admitting to crimes against the Federation?" Spock and Jim stared at each other for a moment,

"We'll both return for court martialling," Jim said, "But the others did nothing. We just made them come with us,"

Pike nodded slightly, "I'll speak to the admiralty. You just need to come straight back,"

Jim grinned at Pike, "Ok, we've just got to make one stop first," he said. Pike opened his mouth to argue but Jim cut the connection before he could make a noise.

Jim turned to Chekov, "Set a course for Delta Vega."

-x-

As soon as they'd finished talking to Pike, Spock got up and left the cockpit. He almost immediately ran into Amanda.

"Mother," Spock said before glancing around, "Where's Father?"

"He's talking to the Vulcan High Council," Amanda informed him, "They're trying to figure out what happened. I'm sure he wouldn't mind your help,"

"Indeed," Spock said however he made no move to go and find Sarek.

Amanda reached out and took hold of Spock's arm. "Spock, what's going on?" she asked, leading him over to the transporter pad and sitting down on the edge of it,

"I told you what was happening when we were on Vulcan,"

Amanda smiled slightly, "You gave us a brief run down," she agreed, "however I don't think you told us everything," Spock raised his eyebrow. Amanda smiled again and squeezed Spock's arm slightly, "Spock, you hugged me, you haven't done that since you were six,"

Spock closed his eyes, "Mother…I-"

"I like hugging you Spock, but you can understand why it made me slightly worried." Spock quirked his lips slightly and rested his head on Amanda's shoulder. Amanda moved her hand from Spock's arm and gently placed it on Spock's head. Spock resisted the urge to lean into the touch, but he did nothing to move away. It felt so nice to be curled up next to Amanda. He didn't think he'd get to do this again. Ever.

"I promise I'll explain everything to you once we get back," Spock said. Amanda nodded slightly, and she started to gently run her fingers through Spock's hair as his eyes slowly drifted shut.

The two of them lost track of time and they stayed sitting like that until there came a cough from the doorway. Amanda sat up and Spock opened his eyes to see Jim standing there smiling at the two of them,

"Am I interrupting?" he asked.

Amanda shook her head, "Not at all,"

Jim nodded and took a few steps forward, "Can I borrow Spock for a few minutes then?"

"Of course," Amanda got up and walked out of the room and Jim sat down next to Spock,

"Are you sure you're OK?" he asked,

"Affirmative,"

Jim grinned, "You can rest your head on my shoulder if you want,"

"I think that might be inappropriate Captain," Spock said,

"I don't know," Jim shrugged, "I'm not your boss here, I'm just your friend. Which reminds me, you probably shouldn't call me Captain anymore seen as we're going to get court martialled when we get back,"

"Indeed," Spock agreed,

"Speaking of which, you didn't have to take any of the blame. I would have taken it all. In fact, that was the plan,"

"I stole the ship Cap-Jim,"

"No, you didn't," Jim sighed, "you didn't arrive until we'd already taken off,"

"I am still the same person who stole the ship,"

Jim shook his head, "You're throwing away your career Spock. They could demote you or worse,"

"They will do the same to you,"

Jim shrugged, "I deserve it,"

"You don't deserve it any more than I do,"

Jim sighed, "I don't want to be responsible for you not being a Commander anymore,"

"You won't be a Captain anymore either," Spock pointed out,

"I didn't really deserve to be Captain in the first place though,"

"Yes, you did,"

"No, I didn't, I just stole it from you,"

"Jim you are a great Captain,"

Jim sighed and put his hand on Spock's arm, "Thanks, but I didn't earn it," he said, "you worked so hard to become first officer and chief science officer, I just showed up and insulted my way to the top. No. You worked for everything you had, I can't be responsible for that being taken away from you,"

"You are not responsible Jim," Spock said after a second, "this is my decision,"

Jim took a deep breath and nodded, "I know Spock, I know."

The two of them sat said by side until the communications panel went off,

"Jim," came Uhura's voice, "We've entered orbit around Delta Vega,"

Jim stood up and walked over to the panel, "Ok, I'm beaming down," Jim said before taking his place on the transported pad. Spock stood up and tried to follow him, but Jim put his hand out,

"I need you to stay here," he said causing Spock to raise his eyebrow, Jim sighed, "this is going to be confusing enough as it is without you being there,"

Spock nodded and walked over to the control panel. "I've put in the coordinates for the Starfleet outpost," he said,

"Scotty's outpost?"

"Indeed,"

Jim nodded, "Energise."


	10. Chapter 10

Jim materialised on the transporter pad on the base on Delta Vega. He glanced around, the room looked as white and clinical as he remembered it. There were several piles of wires and scrap parts lying around that were undoubtably part of some mad project Scotty was working on. However, despite the all the unfinished pieces of work lying around, there was nobody in sight.

"Scotty?" Jim called out as he stepped down off the transporter pad, "Is anybody here?" He wandered out of the room and down the corridor.

As soon as he had left the transporter room he could hear voices coming from one of the nearby rooms. "-Wait, so if we add in the dummy variable then solve for the integrating factor…"

Jim smiled slightly to himself as he walked towards the voices. He reached out and pushed a door open to reveal Scotty and Spock standing in front of a wall covered in equations. Scotty was standing on a chair in front of it, scribbling down a new addition, while Spock stood slightly further back, trying to take everything in.

They had obviously started writing on the whiteboard that was mounted in the middle of the wall. However, it seemed that they had quickly run out of room on the whiteboard and then, instead of rubbing out what they'd already written, they'd decided to write on the wall.

"Hey," Jim said slowly as he took in the wall.

Scotty and Spock spun around, "Hey!" Scotty replied cheerfully, "You must be-"

"James T. Kirk," Spock said in amazement.

Jim grinned, "Hey," Spock didn't say anything he just stared at Jim for a moment.

Scotty looked between the two of them as he jumped down from his chair, "Am I missing something?" he asked with a frown,

Jim nodded, "Yeah but I don't have time to explain it to you," he said before turning to Spock,

"Hey," he said again, "Look this is probably going to sound weird and sudden, but I need you to mind meld with me, otherwise I highly doubt you'll believe anything I'm about to say,"

Spock raised his eyebrow, "I will always believe you," he said, "And I doubt your story will be more far-fetched than mine,"

Jim smiled slightly, "I wouldn't bet on that," he said, "And anyway, a mind meld will definitely be quicker than me just trying to explain everything,"

"A mind meld is a highly intimate thing," Spock said wearily,

But Jim just nodded, "Yeah, well, it won't be the first time you've mind melded with me," he said, taking hold of Spock's wrist and dragging it over to his face. Spock's eyes widened but when Jim let go of his wrist he didn't pull away, he arranged his fingers over the meld points.

"My mind to your mind, my thoughts to your thoughts," Spock muttered and then the two of them fell into Jim's mind.

Jim instantly recognised the feeling of Spock's presence swirling around him. In many ways in felt very similar to when he melded with his Spock, when it was his Spock's presence swirling around his head, but, in other ways, there were several distinct differences between the two Spocks. The main difference being that this Spock felt much more elegant, which shouldn't really be that surprising given that he had been doing this for decades longer than his Spock.

The other big difference was that Jim could feel the sheer wonder coming off this Spock, the kind that came with being in the presence of something thought lost forever. That feeling had been there the first time they had melded on Delta Vega, but Jim had failed to recognise the feeling for what it was that time.

"Jim?" came what could only be Spock's voice,

"Right, yes," Jim gathered up all the thoughts he had about the first time on Delta Vega, about everything Spock had shown him. He pushed them towards the Vulcan and as they flashed through his mind Jim could feel confusion coming off Spock.

Jim then projected his memories of what happened with the Tralurian and everything since then. He could feel Spock's bewilderment ebb away, but it was replaced by a barrage of other emotions. However, before Jim could decipher what all those emotions were Spock withdrew from Jim's mind.

Jim gasped while Spock stared at him,

"What was that?" Scotty asked,

"That was a Vulcan mind meld," Jim said as he regained his composure,

"…Looked intense," Scotty commented. Jim nodded.

"Thank you," Spock said causing Jim to turn back to him, "thank you for saving my planet,"

"It wasn't me,"

Spock smiled slightly, "It was,"

Scotty shook his head with wide eyes, "What's happening?" he asked,

"It's a long story," Jim sighed, "I'll explain it to you later but for now, do you want to get off this planet?"

"More than anything," Scotty replied.

Jim grinned and flipped open his communicator, "Three to beam up." A gold light surrounded the three of them and they dematerialised.

A second later the three of them reappeared on the transporter pad of the science vessel. Spock, Uhura and Bones were standing by the transporter controls. Scotty stepped off the transporter pad and gazed around the room,

"What type of ship is this?" he asked,

"It's a QXWV-science ship," Spock replied as Scotty spun around, looking slightly like a kid in a candy shop.

Jim smiled and also stepped off the transporter pad. "Scotty, this is Spock, Uhura and Bones-"

"McCoy,"

"Bones," Jim smirked.

Scotty smiled at everyone and waved slightly at all of them, "Montgomery Scott," he said, "But Scotty will do just fine,"

Jim turned back to the Spock on the transporter platform. "And this is…" Jim paused. He couldn't introduce the Vulcan as Spock, that would mean explaining everything and he really didn't have time to do that right now,

"I am Selek," Spock said as if sensing Jim's struggle.

Jim nodded, "Yeah, this is Selek,"

Spock nodded at Selek and raised his hand in the live long and prosper sign. Selek returned the sign and finally stepped off the transporter pad.

Jim walked over to the door and turned to his Spock, "Shall we go face the music?" he asked.

Spock raised his eyebrow, "Face the music?" he questioned.

Jim rolled his eyes, "I know you know what it means," he said, "Let's go back to Earth and face Starfleet."


	11. Chapter 11

Jim and Spock were sat outside of a conference room back at the Academy. The two of them had been sent out while the Admirals reached their verdict. That had been half an hour ago.

Jim had been tying himself in knots ever since the two of them had sat down. Honestly, he'd been fairly calm in the lead up to their court martial. Even during it he'd felt fine, as he and Spock had presented all of their evidence, but now…Now that it was out of his hands, Jim felt sick.

"You're bouncing your leg again," Spock said, braking the silence between them.

Jim glanced down, he hadn't even realised he was doing it, "Sorry," he said, "It's a nervous tick,"

"I am aware," Spock replied.

Jim let out a sigh and leant against Spock, "How much longer do you think they're going to be?" he asked,

"I cannot speculate," Spock replied, "there is no situation like this in Starfleet history I could use to give a rough estimation,"

Jim groaned and turned to bury his head in Spock's shoulder, "I'm so sick of waiting if this is it, I just want to know," he said,

Spock nodded, "This waiting period is indeed…unpleasant,"

Jim smiled, "Well that's definitely an understatement,"

"How would you describe it if not unpleasant then?" Spock asked.

Jim sat up straight and hummed thoughtfully, "I don't know," he said, "it's just…my stomach feels like an endless black pit and my heart is beating so fast it feels like it might literally explode out of my chest,"

"Literally explode out of your chest?"

Jim rolled his eyes, "I'm just telling you what it feels like," he shrugged, "Anyway, I'm not sure what the right word is but the word 'unpleasant' doesn't feel like a strong enough word to describe how I'm feeling right now,"

Spock didn't say anything in reply, but he did reach out and take hold of Jim's hand.

Jim smiled to himself as he looked down at their linked hands resting on the bench between them, "Hey, Spock," he said, "If this is the end, I'd just like to say, it's been a pleasure,"

Spock turned to gaze at Jim, "It has Captain," he said quietly causing Jim to beam at him. Just then their tender moment was interrupted by the door to the conference room opening and an alien woman with pale blue skin and gold hair stepping out,

"James Tiberius Kirk and S'chn T'gai Spock," she said, pronouncing Spock's name flawlessly, "the admiralty will see you now,"

Jim glanced at Spock who gave him a slight reassuring smile before letting go off his hand and walking towards the alien woman. Jim then took a deep breath and stood up.

The two of them followed the woman into the room to find themselves face to face with a panel of twelve admirals.

"Kirk, Spock," Admiral Paris greeted them,

"Admirals," Jim replied with a nod of his head,

"We have reviewed the reports submitted by the two of you and Cadets Uhura, McCoy, Sulu and Chekov once you returned to Earth," Admiral Archer started, "We also received a testimony from the Vulcan Elder Selek,"

"We also reviewed the file on the Tralurians," Admiral Price weighed in.

Archer nodded, "Because of this and your help with Vulcan we have decided not to expel you from Starfleet,"

Jim broke into a grin,

"However-"

Jim's face fell,

"The two of you have confessed to steeling a Starfleet science vessel, so the two of you shall be put on report and, Commander Spock," Spock straighten up slightly at the sound of his name, "You will be demoted to Lieutenant and Cadet Kirk, you will graduate with the rest of your class in two days however instead of taking the rank of Lieutenant you will be granted the rank of Ensign,"

Jim nodded,

"What about ship postings?" Spock asked,

Admiral Jones frowned slightly, "Captain Pike has requested the two of you for the Enterprise," she said.

Jim grinned at Spock and who smiled back slightly.

"The two of you are dismissed," Admiral Price said.

Jim and Spock turned and walked out of the room. As soon as the door closed behind them Jim threw his arms around Spock,

"We're still in Starfleet!" he cried.

Spock nodded, "We are," he agreed,

Jim took a step back and ran a hand through his hair, "Oh, I really thought we were going to get kicked out," he said with a breathless laugh, "We should throw a party, we need to celebrate,"

"I am surprised, you don't seem to be upset at no longer being Captain," Spock remarked,

Jim shrugged slightly, "I'll be Captain one day," he said, "I'll just have to earn it this time around, like in the original timeline,"

Spock nodded, "You are destined to become Captain," he said, and Jim beamed at him,

"And you are destined to become my first officer," he said, "there's no universe where we aren't Starfleet's greatest command team."

The two of them smiled at each other again and set off away from the conference room to go and inform the others of the admirals ruling.


End file.
